A Timelord Anniversary
by RiverMoriarty
Summary: The Twelfth Doctor recruits his friend Clara to help him plan an anniversary date for River Song


The Doctor knocked diligently on Clara's front door until at last she came to it. "There is a bell, you know. You could ring it once and it works just as well," she quipped. She had just sat down for afternoon tea and she was slightly annoyed by this untimely visit. She was only slightly annoyed, of course, because deep down she was still happy to see her old friend. The Doctor walked in past her and headed straight for the kitchen. She followed after him.

"I'm not interrupting you now, am I? You seem…" the Doctor looked at her and knew he'd better keep his mouth shut.

"I was just putting on tea."

"Is the tea done now?" the Doctor asked as he snatched a banana and an apple from her fruit bowl on the counter.

"Yes," she said as she lifted her ceramic mug.

"Did you make enough for two?"

"No," she said as she took a sip. He checked her fridge but found nothing interesting before closing the door.

"Very well. You can bring it along," he said as he took a bite of the apple, Clara didn't even bother objecting. She took her tea and followed him out the door.

Once they were onboard the Tardis, Clara proceeded to ask, "So, what new adventure have you got for me today?"

"Clara," the Doctor said as he swung around and rested his hand on a lever, "believe it or not, not everything is about you. I know that's very hard to believe with your rather massive ego."

"Doctor…"

"I need your help."

"As usual." She took a sip.

"As a woman." She stopped. Her eyes squinted a little, unsure of what he was really asking. He could see the gears turning in her head and wanted to stop them before they proceeded any further. "I need your opinion as a woman about what might please another woman. You, of course not being that woman. But I believe your input might be most valuable." He smiled widely, and through his teeth said, "Please." She kept her eyes squinted at him for just a moment longer, pretending to appear offended that she was not _that woman_ he wanted to please. In all honesty, though, she was appreciative of the fact that he valued her opinion, yet offended that he'd never mentioned this _woman_. As always, she had mixed feelings.

"Yeah, alright," she said as she staggered around the console. He clapped his hands and mouthed the words _thank you_. "So," she turned toward him, "who is this woman and why have I never heard of her?"

"You know her," he replied as he bit his apple and flipped a switch. "You remember my wife, River, Doctor Song, totally married her. You met her once; well, you sort of did. Not really. Voluptuous hair," he gestured with his hand and growled under his breath, "voluptuous everything. Nice hair, clever, has her own gun. You remember."

"You mean your dead wife," she replied, utterly confused. He stopped and looked up at her.

"Well, she's not always dead."

"What, is she only mostly dead?"

"Oh no, she's most certainly dead. Thanks for pointing that out, by the way. Good to know you're so sensitive to these matters." He released the levers and knobs of the console and walked toward her. "But," he pointed out, "she is not always dead. River and I, our romance was never a conventional one. We, we shared our lives together in a wonderful mesh of wibbly wobbly…" He looked at her confused face as he tried to demonstrate with his hands the complexity of their intertwined timelines. He cleared his throat and continued, "We never met in the right order."

"But isn't there still a beginning and end? Haven't you already experienced both?"

"Again, you're a truly sympathetic friend, Clara. But pay attention. There are still days within her timeline I still have not touched; precious unmarked days, hours, moments I still have left to share with her. And this," he said as he showed her his own Tardis journal, "this is the key to discovering each one." Clara looked at him concerned and skeptical.

"Forgive me if this seems insensitive…"

"It probably will."

"But isn't this all a bit…" she looked into his eyes with a deep sadness. "Do you really think you should do this? See her again, after you had such a hard time saying goodbye? Won't that only make things more painful for you?"

He sighed deeply as he clutched the Tardis journal in his hand. He graced his fingers tenderly over the scribbled down pages. "I've never been particularly good at goodbyes." He tried to keep his composure, "There's not much good about them. A necessary evil, I suppose." She placed her mug down on the console. She wanted to hug and comfort him but she felt guilty. "Well, you know. You had Danny." She bit her lip. He knew how much that hurt. But then again, now she knew how much he hurt. She sighed and crossed her arms.

"Okay. But maybe you should space these visits out. Give yourself time to process and make them last as long as you can. If you use them all up at once, there won't be anything left to save." The wheels in his head were already spinning. There were still secrets left to uncover. Perhaps, if he could spend a little more time with her, he might still find some way to save her. "But can I ask," she paused, "why now? Why today?"

The Doctor grinned from ear to ear and held up his journal with authority. "Because," he shook it in his hand, "this was an anniversary gift."

"From her?" she asked with amazement and curiosity. He nodded. "But… how?"

He swelled with pride as he responded, "spoilers." He went off to roll out a large board to show his work progress. "I've already begun mapping out possible days within her timeline I haven't yet…" he stopped once he had pulled it out far enough and took a breath, "touched."

"But would like to," Clara smirked as she took another sip of tea.

"No, don't… don't do that. Don't get cheeky. We're talking about my dead wife." She rolled her eyes. He stared at the board and took a few steps backward until he was side by side with Clara. "Now, Clara what I need from you, as a woman…"

"As a friend."

"As a woman friend with womanly thoughts, motives, and such, I need your help," he turned to face her, "to plan the perfect anniversary date. Are you up to the challenge?" She went to take another sip of tea but realized her mug was now empty. With her tea now finished, she felt she might be up to the task.

"Sounds good. Where do we start?"

"I have already selected a date within her timeline that would work." "When's that?"

"The day after our big otter fight. I'll be gone sulking so I won't have to worry about running into me. She'll likely still be mad so I can butter her up a bit before I come back home." He looked to Clara and explained, "The other me that got into the fight…"

"Yeah, yeah. I got that." She couldn't help but smirk at him. As dense as he could be at times, that actually wasn't a bad idea. Flowers and affection were not a bad way to smooth over a fight, and if the Doctor intended to take her out on an unexpected anniversary date, Clara knew River would have to forgive him. Knowing how much he loved her, she knew he'd want to plan something spectacular. If a timelord could offer all of time and space to his companions how much more would he give for his wife?

"I'll need a location, entertainment, flowers, magic, and," he turned with a look of panic, "something to wear."

"I imagine you'll have to choose the activity and location first." The Doctor ran off to pull out another board and placed it beside the first one.

"This is a list of date ideas. The ones in blue are ones I've already done. The ones in red have all been flops. I'm never taking her to that planet again, that was a total bust. She had an oozing rash for a week. I smelled like onions for two," he turned to see her disgusted face. "You… probably didn't need to know that," he said as he ripped the card off the board and threw it away. Clara stepped closer and examined the two boards.

"How long have you been working on these?"

"Oh you know, a couple of hours. I wanted to get more creative but then I couldn't find my crafting supplies and it was beginning to look like a conspiracy board."

Clara laughed as she imagined the Doctor scrapbooking his memories and browsing Pinterest for new ideas. This was an adorable new side of him she hadn't seen before. It was cute.

The Doctor proceeded to plan the perfect date with Clara's help. They roamed throughout the galaxy gathering everything they needed to make this night special. They found a great spot on the south side of Zoland in the Forty-Second Quadrant where they could see the floating jungles, flying dragon fish, and underwater fireworks. The Doctor even hired Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong; well, tricked them into performing for them. The Doctor finally started getting dressed but he stopped after he got to the top button of his shirt. He looked at himself in the mirror and his hearts began to race. He wondered if she would recognized him now, but of course he knew she would. River always knew. He wondered if his eyes would give him away.

Clara entered his room and he turned to her in veiled panic. She smiled at him and said, "I think something's missing." She walked over to his dresser and pulled out a blue bowtie. She held it out to him. He shook his head to avoid breaking into tears.

"I can't," he sniffled and cleared his throat. "I'll look ridiculous."

"Nonsense," she smiled as she placed it around his neck. "Bowties are cool," she whispered. He held the ends in his hands and with watery eyes he smiled back at her. He turned back to the mirror and tied his bowtie once again. He put on his vest and jacket, and then took one last look in the mirror before turning back to Clara.

"Well, Clara. How do I look?"

She gently swept her hands over his shoulders before looking back at him. She took in a deep breath and said, "Like a timelord…in love." They each stood breathless for a moment just inches apart.

He took her hands into his and said, "thank you, from the bottom of my hearts." She just nodded before he released her hands and began to walk away. "We'd better get you home. Anniversary date and all, three might be a crowd." She stood alone for a moment and wrapped her arms around herself. She headed back to the console room. The Doctor had already set the coordinates to drop Clara off where he found her. "Remind me, Clara," he said as he flipped a switch, "I owe you for today."

"Please," she said, "don't mention it."

"No, I'm serious. You were brilliant. You really were."

"Please," she repeated, "don't." He looked at her with concern but she just smiled. The Tardis arrived at her front door and he walked her out. She turned to face him and reached out to touch his bowtie but refrained. She put her hand back down and said, "You'll be fine." The Doctor nodded and kissed her lightly on the forehead. He turned back around and entered the Tardis. Within a few warps of light, the Tardis vanished once again and Clara was left alone. She stood on her door step, not yet ready to go inside.

The Doctor took a deep breath as he stood by the console, gathering as much courage as he could muster. He straightened his bowtie and then began setting the coordinates. He paced around the room until at last the Tardis settled. He stared at the door and felt his hearts leap into his throat. Slowly he made his way to it. He could hear her on the other side singing to herself, as she often did when she thought she was alone. She knew she wasn't.

He pressed his hand against the door and pushed it open. River continued singing as she scrubbed the dishes in her sink. She could feel him enter the room but pretended to ignore him until he stood next to her. "So, I see you've come to apologize now," as she turned off the faucet, dried her hands, and turned toward him. "Oh." She searched his eyes for a moment. She did not recognize his face but she still knew.

His chest swelled as he smiled widely. He uttered the words that had only ever left her lips. "Hello, Sweetie." She smiled as she stepped closer to him and placed her hand on his bowtie. He fought every urge to cry in this moment as her hand moved to his cheek.

"Hello, old friend."


End file.
